Numbers 4:15–33

¹⁵When Aaron and his sons have finished covering the sanctuary and all the furnishings of the sanctuary, as the camp sets out, after that the Kohathites shall come to carry these, but they must not touch the holy things, or they will die. These are the things of the tent of meeting that the Kohathites are to carry.^*

¹⁶“Eleazar son of Aaron the priest shall have charge of the oil for the light, the fragrant incense, the regular grain offering, and the anointing oil, the oversight of all the tabernacle and all that is in it, in the sanctuary and in its utensils.”^*

¹⁷Then the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, ¹⁸“You must not let the tribe of the clans of the Kohathites be destroyed from among the Levites. ¹⁹This is how you shall deal with them in order that they may live and not die when they come near the most holy things: Aaron and his sons shall go in and assign each to a particular task or burden.^{* 20}But the Kohathites^h must not go in to look on the holy things even for a moment, or they will die.”

The Gershonites and Merarites

²¹Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ²²“Take a census of the Gershonites also, by their ancestral houses and by their clans; ²³from thirty years old up to fifty years old you shall enroll them, all who qualify to do work in the tent of meeting.^{* 24}This is the service of the clans of the Gershonites, in serving and bearing burdens: ²⁵They shall carry the curtains of the tabernacle, and the tent of meeting with its covering, and the outer covering of fine leatherⁱ that is on top of it, and the screen for the entrance of the tent of meeting,^{* 26}and the hangings of the court, and the screen for the entrance of the gate of the court that is around the tabernacle and the altar, and their cords, and all the equipment for their service, and they shall do all that needs to be done with regard to them. ²⁷All the service of the Gershonites shall be at the command of Aaron and his sons, in all that they are to carry and in all that they have to do, and you shall assign to them as duties all that they are to carry.^{* 28}This is the service of the clans of the Gershonites relating to the tent of meeting, and their duties are to be under the oversight of Ithamar son of Aaron the priest.

²⁹“As for the Merarites, you shall enroll them by their clans and their ancestral houses; ³⁰from thirty years old up to fifty years old you shall enroll them, everyone who qualifies to do the work of the tent of meeting.^{* 31}This is their duty to carry, as the whole of their service in the tent of meeting: the frames of the tabernacle, with its bars, pillars, and bases,^{* 32}and the pillars of the court all around with their bases, pegs, and cords, with all their equipment and all their related service, and you shall assign by name the objects that they are required to carry. ³³This is the service of the clans of the Merarites, the whole of their service relating to the tent of meeting, under the hand of Ithamar son of Aaron the priest.”^*